Although the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was written in order to end discrimination in various fields based on religion, race, color, or national origin, in the area of employment the Act also prohibited gender discrimination.[1] A prohibition on gender discrimination in public education and federally assisted programs was not found in the 1964 Act[2] but passage of the 1964 Act energized the women''''s rights movement, which had somewhat slowed after women''''s suffrage in 1920.[3] While Title IX is best known for its impact on high school and collegiate athletics, the original statute made no explicit mention of sports.[4] In 1967 President Lyndon Johnson sent a series of executive orders in order to make some clarifications. Before these clarifications were made, the National Organization for Women (NOW) persuaded President Johnson to include women in his executive orders.[3] Most notable is Executive Order 11375, which required all entities receiving federal contracts to end discrimination on the basis of sex in hiring and employment. In 1969 Bernice Sandler used the executive order to help her fight for her job at the University of Maryland.[5] She used university statistics showing how female employment at the university had plummeted as qualified women were replaced by men.[3] Sandler brought her complaints to the Department of Labor''''s Office for Federal Fair Contracts Compliance where she was encouraged to file a formal complaint. Citing inequalities in pay, rank, admissions and much more, Sandler began to file complaints not only against the University of Maryland but numerous other colleges as well. Working in conjunction with NOW and Women''''s Equity Action League (WEAL), Sandler filed 269 complaints against colleges and universities.[3] In 1970 Sandler joined Representative Edith Green''''s Subcommittee on Higher Education of the Education and Labor Committee and sat in on the congressional hearings where women''''s rights were discussed. It was in the congressional hearings that Green and Sandler first proposed Title IX. An early draft was authored by Representative Patsy Mink, with the assistance of Representative Green.[6] In the hearing there was very little mention of athletics.[3] Their focus was more specifically on the hiring and employment practices of federally financed institutions. The proposed Title IX created lots of buzz and gained a lot of support. Introduction and enactment[edit] Senator Birch Bayh of Indiana The first person to introduce Title IX in Congress was its author and chief Senate sponsor, Senator Birch Bayh of Indiana. At the time, Bayh was working on numerous constitutional issues related to women''''s rights, including the Equal Rights Amendment, to build "a powerful constitutional base from which to move forward in abolishing discriminatory differential treatment based on sex".[7] As they were having some difficulty getting the ERA out of committee, the Higher Education Act of 1965 was on the floor for reauthorization, and on February 28, 1972, Senator Bayh introduced the ERA''''s equal education provision as an amendment.[8] In his remarks on the Senate floor, Bayh said, "We are all familiar with the stereotype of women as pretty things who go to college to find a husband, go on to graduate school because they want a more interesting husband, and finally marry, have children, and never work again. The desire of many schools not to waste a ''''man''''s place'''' on a woman stems from such stereotyped notions. But the facts absolutely contradict these myths about the ''''weaker sex'''' and it is time to change our operating assumptions."[9] "While the impact of this amendment would be far-reaching", Bayh concluded, "it is not a panacea. It is, however, an important first step in the effort to provide for the women of America something that is rightfully theirsâ"an equal chance to attend the schools of their choice, to develop the skills they want, and to apply those skills with the knowledge that they will have a fair chance to secure the jobs of their choice with equal pay for equal work"